---
title: How Can Social Media Help Your Business
description: Social media is a great communication tool that is much more effective than advertising and other marketing techniques. Here are the numerous benefits of social media for business.
image: https://www.iliyanastareva.com/hs-fs/file-2171356159-jpg/blog-files/benefits-of-social-media-for-marketing-purposes.jpg
---

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## [How Can Social Media Help Your Business](https://www.iliyanastareva.com/blog/how-can-social-media-help-your-business)

 [fa icon="calendar"] 22-Nov-2012 09:30:00 / by [Iliyana Stareva](https://www.iliyanastareva.com/blog/author/iliyana-stareva)

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Platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn![](https://www.iliyanastareva.com/hs-fs/file-2171356159-jpg/blog-files/benefits-of-social-media-for-marketing-purposes.jpg?width=261&name=benefits-of-social-media-for-marketing-purposes.jpg) are social instruments of two-way communication. This means, they offer businesses the opportunity to talk directly to their customers, but most importantly customers have the means to talk back to the company too, anytime, anywhere. And this is where the power of social media lies – in communication.

What some businesses get wrong is how social media can only serve as another advertising tool. The reality however is that broadcasting a message and simply selling don’t work anymore. As [Brian Solis](http://www.briansolis.com/2010/01/engage/) says: “People are searching for answers and directions, not messages or sales pitches.” It is ‘peer recommendations’ (the reviews and opinions about products and services by other people like us) that we seek on social media and that are absolutely critical to company’s marketing activities for one very simple reason: people trust friends and others like them, not organisations.

Research (see [infographic by Hubspot](http://blog.hubspot.com/blog/tabid/6307/bid/30239/71-More-Likely-to-Purchase-Based-on-Social-Media-Referrals-Infographic.aspx) below) shows that 75% of consumers do not even believe ads tell the truth, whereas 90% would turn to friends for brand recommendations and 71% are more likely to buy a product if someone referred to it on social media.

Here are some of the benefits and opportunities of actively engaging on social media that are worth considering:

- Increasing brand awareness through bringing attention to products, services, events and campaigns.
- Participating in direct, real-time and instantaneous two-way communications with customers that can help in identifying consumer needs and wants as well as receiving customer feedback to accordingly improve company offerings; in other words ‘free’ market research.
- Establishing brand reputation and engaging with consumers to build relationships with them and to enhance customer satisfaction and loyalty as well as to form brand ambassadors.
- Attracting new customers and generating sales (also through the referrals of current customers on social media).
- Improving SEO and driving traffic back to the corporate website.
- Engaging with relevant media to pursue new PR opportunities.
- Establishing thought leadership and showing the personality behind the brand by sharing company relevant information such as staff changes, new business initiatives, charitable activities, success stories and expertise.
- Performing competitor analysis and monitoring competition.

What’s most relevant for any business is that its customers and clients are already on social media. Finding ways of engaging with them can only benefit marketing activities, because: “Marketing is no longer about the stuff that you make, but about the stories you tell” ([Seth Godin](http://sethgodin.typepad.com/)).

*(Click on the infographic for a larger view)*

[![](https://www.iliyanastareva.com/hs-fs/file-2171356169-jpg/blog-files/hubspot-ecommce-inbound-marketing-vs-outbound-marketing.jpg)](http://iliyanastareva.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/hubspot-ecommce-inbound-marketing-vs-outbound-marketing.jpg)

  

 Topics: [Social Media](https://www.iliyanastareva.com/blog/topic/social-media), [Marketing](https://www.iliyanastareva.com/blog/topic/marketing)

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#### Written by [Iliyana Stareva](https://www.iliyanastareva.com/blog/author/iliyana-stareva)

Iliyana Stareva is a thought leader in Customer Success and AI. She’s the author of Inbound PR, a keynote speaker, and currently leads Customer Health for EMEA at ServiceNow. Iliyana has held global and regional roles at ServiceNow, Cisco, and HubSpot, spanning customer experience, operations, and digital transformation.

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